The Halloween Celebration

The average American today, when talking of Halloween, thinks of a children’s holiday where all the children get dressed up and go door to door asking for candy. The folks who answer the door usually have comments like, “Oh, what a cute superhero!” or “Ooh, what a scary ghost!” thinking all the while that there […]

The average American today, when talking of Halloween, thinks of a children’s holiday where all the children get dressed up and go door to door asking for candy. The folks who answer the door usually have comments like, “Oh, what a cute superhero!” or “Ooh, what a scary ghost!” thinking all the while that there is nothing wrong with this yet another “American” holiday.

But do you know how Halloween got started? Let me give you a brief history. Halloween was started by the Celts, who celebrated their New Year on November 1st. A festival was held the evening before, October 31st, in honor of their Celtic lord of death, Samhaim. This marked the beginning of a season of cold, darkness, and decay; and later became associated with human death. The Celts believed their “lord of death” would allow dead souls to return to their earthly homes on this day. . . .